I Rock, Therefore I Am: My Autistic Perspective on Stimming
In the zone...
"Feels so right, it can't be wrong. Rockin' and rollin' all week long." - Pratt & McClain, Happy Days
Are you familiar with "stimming"? Perhaps you stim, yourself, know those that do, or have seen others doing so? I've been stimming for as long as I can remember, yet only became aware of the term for such behaviour, recently. For anyone unfamiliar, stimming can be any repetitive activity that has a soothing, calming effect on stressed practitioners.
Some examples may include rocking back and forth, flapping one's hands, sucking on rubber beads, fidgeting with toys, and so on. While common within the autistic community, stimming isn't exclusive to it. This is just the Coles Notes version, though. Stimming is a broad, complex subject. I'm keeping things short and simple.
Additional forms of stimming may include bumping one's head against a pillow at night, playing with one's clothing, jewellery, or body parts, twirling a pen around, clapping or rubbing one's hands together, building stuff with Lego, working with clay, plasticine, putty, or Play-Doh, squeezing stress balls, popping bubble wrap, manipulating the articulated limbs of action figures, and so forth.
Such tactile activities can be quite helpful in regulating practitioners' daily bouts of stress or anxiety. However, coping with stress and anxiety aren't the only reasons for stimming. For example, some may do so when happy or excited. Others may stim while deep in thought or listening to music. Some may even do so when bored or simply to stay awake during brutal all-nighters at the office. Again, stimming isn't exclusive to the autistic community. Anyone can do so!
In my case, my preferred method of stimming is via rocking back and forth in the privacy of my own home. This helps alleviate the symptoms of my autism-related anxiety, is relaxing, and simply feels good. I especially love rocking while engaging in my favourite hobbies or activities, as doing so transports me to "the zone", my own happy little paradise, a conduit to my creativity. I feel I do some of my best work while in the zone. To anyone who also stims via rocking, I advise doing so in a sturdy and comfy chair, ha-ha.
Hopefully, this clears the air on stimming and why some of us do so. Do you have any thoughts on this post? If so, feel free to reach out by leaving a comment, dropping me a line, or signing my guestbook to share your opinions on this or any other topic. Also, feel free to press the "like" button if you enjoyed this post, as "likes" help me gauge audience interest in the content I post. After all, I don't want to bore anyone, ha-ha. Until next time, love, peace, and chicken grease!
Posted in "Autistic Perspectives" on Wednesday, September 4, 2024.